Differential modulation of attentional ERPs in smoked and insufflated cocaine-dependent associated with neuropsychological performance

Background Cocaine consumption is associated with reduced attentional event-related potentials (ERPs), namely P3a and P3b, indicating bottom-up and top-down deficits respectively. At cognitive level, these impairments are larger for faster routes of administration (e.g., smoked cocaine [SC]) than slower routes (e.g., insufflated cocaine [IC]). Here we assess these ERPs considering the route of cocaine administration. We hypothesized that SC dependent (SCD) would exhibit reduced modulation of the P3a, while both SCD and IC dependent (ICD) would show reduced modulation of the P3b. Methods We examined 25 SCD, 22 ICD matched by poly-consumption profiles, and 25 controls matched by demographic variables. We combined EEG data from the Global-Local task with behavioral data from attentional cognitive tasks. Results At the behavioral level, SCD exhibited attentional deficits in both bottom-up and top-down processes, while ICD only showed a tendency for top-down deficits. Modulation of P3a and P3b was lower in consumer groups. We observed subtle route-based differences, with larger differences in the P3a for SCD and in the P3b for ICD. Neurophysiological and behavioral data converged, with the P3a associated to bottom-up performance and P3b to top-down. Conclusions Different routes of administration lead to distinct modulations of attentional neurocognitive profiles. Specifically, SCD showed greater attentional impairment, mainly at bottom-up/P3a, while ICD showed a trend of top-down/P3b deficits. These findings emphasize the crucial role of considering the route of administration in both clinical and research settings and support the use of attentional ERPs as valid measures for assessing attentional deficits in substance abuse. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement This study did not receive any funding ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: The study was approved by the ethics committee at Favaloro University (N◦ 609/16, record 554). I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable. Yes All data produced in the present work are contained in the manuscript